Inkjet technology has expanded its application to high-speed, commercial and industrial printing, in addition to home and office usage, because of its ability to produce economical, high quality, multi-colored prints. This technology is a non-impact printing method in which an electronic signal controls and directs droplets or a stream of ink that can be deposited on a wide variety of substrates. Current inkjet printing technology involves forcing the ink drops through small nozzles by thermal ejection, piezoelectric pressure or oscillation, onto the surface of a media.
In inkjet printing method, both the print media and the ink play a key role in the overall image quality and permanence of the printed images and articles. Thus, it has often created challenges to find media and ink which can be effectively used with such printing techniques and which impart good image quality. In addition, nowadays, prints and printed articles with specific characteristics and appearances are often wanted.
As an example, recent advances in color copying and printing have put increasing importance on developing new methods to prevent forgery of security documents such as banknotes. While there have been many techniques developed, one area of increasing interest is in developing security features that cannot be readily reproduced, particularly by a color copier or printer. One approach that has been taken is to create a printed image that is visually distinct from its reproduction, such as, for examples, printed image that exhibit variable optical properties and/or that have the ability to create reflective features, e.g., reflective security features that display variable information.
Accordingly, investigations continue into developing media, ink and/or printed articles that exhibit such specific properties such as, for examples, variable optical properties.